Hi there TuneInTurnOnHelpOut fans,
This is just something that has to be shared. TuneInTurnOnHelpOut.org is NOT just an activist oriented site, but a database for all makes and models of human beings who just want to be part of “the good” that is happening all around our beautiful world today. Some are volunteers. Some are missionaries. Some are feeding the hungry. Some are housing the homeless. And some are out there in the streets fighting for our Constitutional Rights while we go about our day to day business. The ANSWER Coalition is one such organization. I have marched more than once with them in some city across this great country of ours. And I recently met Brian Becker (the gentleman who wrote the below article) at the United Nations last year while attending the General Assembly Meeting where we met with Iran President Mahmoud Ahmadinjad among other things. Please take a moment to read the news piece below regarding the blatant disregard for our freedom of speech and assembly laws that unfortunately seems to happen to those bold enough to speak up more and more these days — regardless of “who” is president. Feel free to reach out to these bold and beautiful people at ANSWER. They are some of the most courageous Americans I know. If you can help in any way, lend a hand. Sign up for their mailing list, and maybe i will see you at a march or demonstration one of these days. Where there is a need, WE WILL BE THERE. Let’s do this thing.
Sincerely,
Ed Hale

Dear Ed,

Free Speech rights in Washington D.C. are under attack and we need you to take action.

The outcome of this struggle will have an impact on all progressive groups.

In the last weeks, the ANSWER Coalition has been hit with nearly $7,000 in fines for posters announcing the March 21 National March on the Pentagon that have been put up in Washington D.C. Just today, we received another $1,850 in fines for 12 posters.

The government is trying to effectively eliminate ANSWER’s and any group’s ability to engage in postering for Free Speech protected activities or dissemination of posters and flyers. The message is this: If you are an anti-war group or a progressive grassroots organization and you hand out or put up a poster, as you may have always done in the past, you can now expect heavy fines and long court battles that are designed to divert money and resources — or shut you down completely.

The posters for which we were fined are lawfully posted. The District is also issuing fines against ANSWER regardless of who put up the poster — they are just sanctioning us for being organizers and supporters of the political anti-war demonstration being publicized. Unlike many of the politicians, concert promoters and other corporate entities that put up posters in DC, the ANSWER Coalition even sends out teams of volunteers to remove posters following the conclusion of a demonstration or event.

Many individuals come in and take posters and leaflets from the office or download them from the website. As we have done for the past eight years we provide copies of the DC regulations to people that indicate how to poster in conformity with lawful regulations.

A big shift happened prior to the September 15, 2007 Bring the Troops Home Now mass demonstration that was led by veterans from the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. We were targeted in an unprecedented campaign and hit with $55,000 in fines. (more…)

Dear TuneInTurnOnHelpOut.org members,

On a day such as this as we settle in with our friends and families or attend the town picnic, I ask that you pause and share a message with those you encounter today.  Remind those near you that in nations around the globe it is illegal to own guns, it is illegal to speak freely, it is illegal to assemble peaceably.  Remind them that we pause our lives to celebrate freedom because our founders chose to no longer live under the oppressive boot heel of tyranny.

My brothers and sisters in freedom I will share with you what happened to my wife as she traveled yesterday.  While entering the train station on her way home she was greeted by throngs of yellow shirt clad police officers searching everyone who chose to travel by train. No warrants.  They pressured her to submit to a search by asking, “Don’t you want to be safe?”

As I type these words I well up with tears for the loss of the freedoms we once shared.  My heart is broken for this land.  Now more than ever dear brothers and sisters it is time to rise and resist this tyranny.

It is time to turn back the clock and remember why we fight. For some it is the message Ron Paul spoke of during his campaign.  For most it is the message Aaron Russo left us with.  The man who changed the lives of millions of Americans and sparked a firestorm of freedom lives on in our daily struggle to “keep our republic”.

What have you done to keep the torch of liberty burning? Have you shared
America: Freedom to Fascism with someone? Have you shared Republic Magazine? Have you forwarded emails? Have you donated to an organization?
Have you stood on a street corner in sub-zero temperatures just to hold a sign?

If you have no answer, then take that one moment today and remember why we fight. That moment may be when you hear the Star Spangled Banner or watch the sea of American flags pass you on the street.  But I ask you this, hold on to that moment and carry it with you for alone in the struggle for freedom you are not.

We the People of Restore The Republic are right there next to you.

May this Independence Day be a glorious one.

Yours forever in Freedom and Truth,

Gary S. Franchi Jr.
National Director
Successor to Aaron Russo
http://RestoreTheRepublic.com/Gary

Please support the Freedom Media Project:
http://FreedomMediaProject.com

Just when it appeared that no matter what we did, we were never going to make any headway and the bad guys were always going to win…. This just in from the Times….

Breaking News Alert
The New York Times
Thursday, June 12, 2008 — 10:32 AM ET
—–

Justices Rule Terror Suspects Can Appeal in Civilian Courts

The Supreme Court ruled that foreign terrorism suspects held at Guantánamo Bay have the right to challenge their detention in U.S. civilian courts.

Read More:
http://www.nytimes.com/?emc=na

Uh, yeah, well that makes sense since that’s the FUCKING LAW to begin with! (Boy those TImes reporters sure have potty-mouths!)

From our friends at Restore the Republic, a bold and brave freedom & liberty watchdog organization, comes this video….

40 years ago today, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated and this nation lost one of the greatest leaders for peace and justice that we have ever known. Read his words. Listen to his speech in the video below. He could easily be speaking to the American people today regarding our “new war”… it is eerie.

* * *

“A nation that continues year after year to spend more money on military defense than on programs of social uplift is approaching spiritual doom.”

* * *

“I refuse to accept the view that mankind is so tragically bound to the starless midnight of racism and war that the bright daybreak of peace and brotherhood can never become a reality… I believe that unarmed truth and unconditional love will have the final word.”

* * *

“The time is always right to do what is right.”

* * *

Here’s a clip from one of Dr. King’s most powerful speeches:

P.S. If you had trouble clicking on the video above, try this link:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=b80Bsw0UG-U

Brought to us by our friends at http://pol.moveon.org/ – Aisling, Adam G, Adam R, Anna, Carrie, Daniel, Eli, Ilyse, Joan, Justin, Karin, Laura, Lenore, Marika, Matt, Nita, Noah, Patrick, Peter, Stephanie, Tanya, and Wes
MoveOn.org Political Action
Friday, April 4th, 2008

Dear Friends, I can think of many causes today that are worth our attention and effort. That’s the thing about living today’s world… and truly it’s a shame. I, like you I’m sure, would much rather be spending my time enjoying this precious gift of a life we have than be spending every waking hour protesting, marching, signing petitions, or calling congress or the White House… Why must our greatest battles be currently with our own elected leaders and government officials? But times are as they are. This cause is as worthy as any other that we have been called to serve. Please take a moment and read the issue at hand below. Chances are you might be as shocked as I was — the idea that “we the people” can no longer assemble at the National Mall in our Nation’s capital is, well, shocking. Tune in, turn on, and take action. As always, I am confident you will know what to do. Sincerely, Ed Hale

~ Please circulate this urgent update widely ~

The ANSWER Coalition is vigorously supporting the campaign launched by the Partnership for Civil Justice to defend free speech rights on the National Mall. We thank all the ANSWER Coalition supporters who have joined this campaign and we urge everyone to do so. What follows is an urgent message from the Partnership for Civil Justice about the campaign.

Oppose the Bush administration’s assault on free speech! Save the National Mall as a place of protest! Also an important message to those who have signed the Statement in Defense of Free Speech on the National Mall - please read

For those who already signed the Statement in Defense of Free SpeechPlease take 30 seconds to let us know if we can publicize your name as a signer along with 15,000 others. If you signed up before, it is crucial that you take the next step by clicking this link.

The struggle to preserve Free Speech in Washington D.C. has entered a new phase. We are writing to you so that you can help in the next step of this critical struggle. If he gets his way, Bush will leave office having shredded fundamental rights to redress grievances and engage in dissent on the National Mall in the nation’s capital. But we can stop this plan.

Because of the participation of you and so many other people around the country, the Bush Administration has been pushed on the defensive. Due to immense public pressure that has been mobilized in the last months the government is now resorting to a smoke and mirror campaign to derail those who are fighting to preserve cherished rights. The people can stop them.

We need you to take action right now:

We are planning on sending the Statement in Defense of Free Speech Rights on the National Mall – with a list of its thousands of signers — to the National Park Service and want to further publish the statement. Showing just how many people have already taken action will be an important part of the campaign to defend the National Mall and the First Amendment.

Before we send or publish the statement and signers, we want to confirm with you that we can include you as a signer. We value your privacy. Please take 30 seconds to fill out the form here if you have already signed the statement.

Please take a moment and help this Free Speech movement take the next step. title=”http://www.pephost.org/site/R?i=kGMnA9vcJg50NFf1hFqZMA..”>If you signed the Statement in Defense of Free Speech on the National Mall before it is crucial that you take the next step by clicking this link. You can also let us know on this same link if you do not want your name included publicly. Initial signers include, Howard Zinn, Cindy Sheehan, Ed Asner, Malik Rahim, Ramsey Clark, Kathy Kelly, Ron Kovic, Dennis Banks and many others.

Here is the situation: More than 15,000 letters flooded the National Park Service (NPS) supporting the centrality of free speech rights on the National Mall. The Bush Administration was shocked by the overwhelming response. They thought that they could essentially privatize the National Mall in Washington DC and quietly eliminate essential Free Speech activities. The plan is to go into effect the last month that Bush is in office in January 2009.

This insidious goal hasn’t changed one bit but they have now quickly shifted their tactics to blunt the massive new movement that has arisen to defend Free Speech on the National Mall.

Bush’s NPS has quickly revamped the web site. The phrase “First Amendment” now appears all over the site. You would think that they are re-organizing the National Mall in order to have more demonstrations, protests and rallies rather than try to banish or limit them. It is all smoke and mirrors. More untruths from the Bush Administration working in partnership with Corporate America.

This is a coordinated effort that we are seeing across the country - the privatization of our public spaces to make them off-limits for us to gather for free speech and assembly. While we have just been victorious in the fight for the Great Lawn of Central Park all eyes are now turning to the National Mall. This is the battle of most significance with repercussions that will be felt coast-to-coast.

Here is how you can help. It will take only a moment of your time but it will make a huge difference.

1) The Partnership for Civil Justice has set up an easy-to-use mechanism that will allow you to send a message directly to the National Park Service about their National Mall Plan. Click this link to send your message.

2) Sign the Statement in Defense of Free Speech Rights on the National Mall.

3) If you have already signed this statement, click this link right now to let us know if we can publicize you as a signer of this important statement.

4) If you are unsure whether you have already signed, you can sign the statement again, and all duplicate names will be eliminated.

Sincerely,

Mara Verheyden-Hillard and Carl Messineo, co-founders of Partnership for Civil Justice

---

More linksBackground on the NPS initiative to restrict protesting on the National Mall
Washington Post article: The Battle to Remold the Mall
Alternet article: National Mall Redesign Could Seriously Restrict Free Speech

Michigan doctor facing criminal charges for defending a protester

As mass sentiment against the U.S. occupation of Iraq continues to grow across the world, many activists on college campuses are experiencing increased police repression and attacks on their First Amendment rights. One of these instances occurred on Nov. 30, 2006, in Ann Arbor, Michigan—home of the University of Michigan.

As a result of that protest, Dr. Catherine Wilkerson, a respected community physician who provides medical care to working-class people at a local clinic, was charged with two crimes stemming from an encounter with local and campus police. On Nov. 26, 2007, her trial is set to begin in Ann Arbor.

The ANSWER Coalition is supporting the efforts of the Committee to Defend Catherine Wilkerson to demand that all charges against her be dropped. Click here to show your support by signing a petition that will be hand delivered to University of Michigan President Mary Sue Coleman and Washtenaw County Prosecutor Brian Mackie.

Background

During a protest against the war on Iraq and threats of war on Iran, University of Michigan police brutalized and arrested three activists. Police tactics included the use of pressure point control tactics. PPCT is a pain compliance tactic that essentially uses painful pressure and manipulation of the body in order to force the victim to comply.

After brutalizing one protester and threatening him with pepper spray directly in the face, the police then pinned him to the ground in a manner that can result in suffocation. As the man groaned in agony, the officer used his knee and his substantial physical bulk to crush the protester’s chest, face down against the floor. Between desperate gasps, the man told officers that he could not breathe, and then fell unconscious.

Dr. Wilkerson identified herself as a physician and demanded access to the man in order to examine him and determine if his life was in danger. After much resistance from the police, Dr. Wilkerson was allowed to examine the man and determined that he was still alive. As this was occurring, an ambulance with paramedics, the fire department and the Ann Arbor police arrived on the scene.

Dr. Wilkerson was forcibly kept aside. One of the medics then held a succession of three ammonia inhalants directly under the patient’s nose, culminating with cupping his hands over the man’s nose while he forced him to inhale the third capsule of the noxious gas. This caused the man to retch and nearly vomit as the medic taunted him, “You don’t like that, do you?”

Dr. Wilkerson was outraged by the punitive and dangerous actions of the police and medics. She told the medics, “What you are doing has no efficacy and is punitive, and you know it.”

For speaking out, Dr. Wilkerson too was brutalized by the police.

Police grabbed her from behind, wrenched her arms behind her, then slammed her against a wall and held her there as she begged him to release his painful grip. The officer then detained her against her will for a protracted period of time, forcing her to stand in a hallway despite her continued extreme shoulder pain.

Dr. Wilkerson was not arrested at this time, however, as she did not break any laws and was simply attempting to fulfill her ethical obligations as a physician.

Dr. Wilkerson later registered a complaint of police brutality at City Hall. One week after filing her complaint, she was shocked to find a letter in the mail from the county prosecutor informing her that she was being charged with attempted assaulting/resisting/obstructing a police officer and attempted assaulting/resisting/obstructing a paramedic.

The charges are a blatant example of police retaliation against a respected doctor and community activist for complaining about police misconduct.

Dr. Wilkerson faces jail time and hefty fines if she is convicted. She has refused to take the prosecutor’s plea deal because she has done nothing wrong. In fact, her intervention in the police riot prevented possible grave injuries for those attacked by the cops.

Statement from Dr. Wilkerson

From “Scenes from a cop riot” by Dr. Catherine Wilkerson:

When I became a doctor I knew I would encounter a lot of human suffering, but I never envisioned a time when my efforts to alleviate it would get me brutalized by the police, then charged with a crime. I never envisioned a time when I would witness another health “professional” brazenly violate the most fundamental principle of medical ethics: first do no harm. But thirty years after graduation, at a political event on the campus of the University of Michigan, those things happened.

Take action

All the charges should be dropped on Dr. Wilkerson immediately. Community activists, medical workers and all progressive people should join in this demand. The ANSWER Coalition is supporting the efforts of the Committee to Defend Catherine Wilkerson to demand that all charges against her be dropped.

Click here to show your support by signing a petition that will be hand delivered to University of Michigan President Mary Sue Coleman and Washtenaw County Prosecutor Brian Mackie.

A.N.S.W.E.R. Coalition
http://www.answercoalition.org/
info@internationalanswer.org
National Office in Washington DC: 202-544-3389
New York City: 212-694-8720
Los Angeles: 213-251-1025
San Francisco: 415-821-6545
Chicago: 773-463-0311

 

Yom Kippur is a day of atonement for jews world wide.
This is what i am sorry for:
by Arlan Feiles

It seems that my rants and raves about the state of our union continue to annoy many ears.
I have a terrible problem with bringing up the nasty topic of the disintegration of the American dream
It was brought to my attention that perhaps if i talked about something other than the fact that our Nation is on the verge of a Constitutional catastrophe,
maybe people wouldnt continue to roll their eyes at my voiced concerns of the current state of our “Nation”.
While most of you are pleasantly sedated by reality TV and your struggle to keep up with the Joneses.
Our Constitution is systematically being ripped to shreds.
Have you noticed?
well, If you can think of something more important than our country being thrust into pre-revolution politics I happily invite your suggestions.
Frankly, I cannot stand the shoulder shrugs and the “What do we do about it” responses.
We are currently steps away from living in a society akin to 1935 Berlin.
you think i’m joking?
you think that’s not funny?
Your Right!
Perhaps youve seen the new photos emerging of smiling Nazis at Auschwitz.
Well, I see these vacant smiles in alot of your faces.
Alot of you “Liberals” who scoff at the “Republican thugs” while surfing for the newest American Top Model.
and Alot of you Republicans who surf righteously in step with your “God”.
When do we stand As Americans?
When do we decide that the future of our Nation is more important than our Wiis? our Gods?
When do we insist on a candidate who truly cherishes the American Dream and what it really means?
When do we stop voting for the lesser of evils?
When will we stop them from silencing our voices?
When will i hear any of your voices?
Im tired of hearing myself repeat the same thing over and over.
I too am guilty. I too have let this happen. for this i am sorry.
In the Jewish Community we constantly repeat the phrases “Never Forget” and “It can never happen Again”
Have we forgotten these words?
Have you forgotten these Words?
Have we forgotten their meaning?
will it happen again?
It can and it will if we believe it can’t. Just saying it can’t doesn’t mean shit.
If you dont know what Im talking about please educate yourself. pick up a book or listen to the radio. do something.
Jesus, Barry Fuckin Manillow is acting more like a man than most of you.
Its time to stand up for your rights. all of our rights. let me hear your voices.
Lets not stand alone in darkness and silence. Please let me know that i am not alone in my concern.
I love and cherish you all. I worry about the future of your children and one day mine.
This time of year jews atone for our wrongs.
I am sorry i have wronged you all for not speaking loud and long enough.
A very wise person said “be the leader you long for”
this is my goal for the New Year.
Please forgive me for not being a better citizen and example
I will hope not to let you down again.
happy holidays with love
Arlan

Dear Friends, Having just seen “Judgement at Nuremberg” myself recently, I googled the above phrase to research it’s origin and perhaps confirm the veracity of the speech itself served so eloquently by Mr. Tracy. What i discovered was this incisive little nugget written in Feb of 2007 by legal analyst Andrew Cohen from CBS News. Give it a quick read-through or two. I also pasted the comments which were quite revealing as to the atmosphere of public opinion right now in American society. It would appear that a large majority — those that are paying attention that is — feel trapped and helpless by our current predicament, having come to realize that regardless of facts, figures, lies, truths, trials, protests, marches, or just about anything else, we the American people are now prisoners in our own country, held hostage by a few evil-doers in a building we call “the white house.” What we can or will do, I don’t think anyone can say. But the article and the posts are interesting enough to perhaps inspire a few ideas. Yours, Ed Hale

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“The Value Of A Single Human Being”
Legal Analyst Andrew Cohen Is Reminded By A Movie That Certain Values Should Take Precedence

Feb. 5, 2007

Attorney Andrew Cohen analyzes legal issues for CBS News

Sometimes you find wisdom, or even just a welcomed new expression of an old, good idea, in the strangest places.Last Friday night, one of the old-time movie channels offered up “Judgment at Nuremberg,” the weighty 1961 movie about the famous Nazi war crimes tribunal. I began watching because of the movie’s cast: Spencer Tracy, Judy Garland, Burt Lancaster, Richard Widmark, Montgomery Clift, Marlene Dietrich and Maximillian Schell. William Shatner played a young officer. Werner Klemperer, later Col. Klink from “Hogan’s Heroes,” played an evil villain.Who could resist?But I continued watching, hour after hour, because of the movie’s message. It is resonant and relevant nearly a half century later, and perfectly befitting a week that saw not one but two federal appeals courts wrestle with some of the most contentious legal issues to arise out of the terror attacks upon America.The film is about good judgment and bad judgment, evil choices and noble ones, and how a society reacts, or ought to anyway, to times of great stress. It ought to be required viewing for every government lawyer and policymaker as well as every federal judge who has to decide how our country will respond to the war on terrorism. (more…)